17 December 2010 | Lindsay Clark
The growth gap between the eurozone economies widened in
December, a survey of purchasing managers has found.
The Markit Flash Eurozone Composite Output
Index, based on around 85 per cent of usual monthly PMI replies, dropped off a
little from 55.5 in November to 55.0 in December.
By country, growth
picked up in Germany to a pace rarely exceeded over the survey’s 13-year
history, running well ahead of the eurozone average and closing the country’s
best quarter of expansion since the first quarter of 2007.
Chris Williamson, chief economist at research
firm Markitsaid: “The flash
PMI readings for December indicate widening divergences within the eurozone. A
near-record rate of growth in Germany and robust expansion in France contrast
with a slowdown to near-stagnation in the other euro nations collectively.
“These growth differences can largely be
explained by the failure of manufacturing-led expansion to spill over into
stronger service-sector performance in the region’s periphery, as well as
renewed job losses outside of the euro area’s two largest economies,” he said.
While the eurozone economy expanded by 1.7 per cent in 2010, the
reliance on Germany in generating this growth was highlighted by the fact that
the currency bloc’s largest national economy expanded by 1 per cent in the
fourth quarter alone and 3.6 per cent in 2010, almost double the pace seen in
the eurozone as a whole, Williamson added.
Manufacturers appear
to be preparing for further output growth in coming months, with stocks of
purchases showing only the second monthly rise seen over the past four years,
as input buying rose at the fastest rate for eight months, the Markit survey
found.
